Lead Pre-Sales Architect

Aker Systems was founded in 2017 by a team of experienced technology professionals who recognised an opportunity to provide highly secure enterprise data platforms to large organisations.  We build and operate ground-breaking, ultra-secure, high performance, cloud-based data infrastructure for the enterprise. Our proprietary technology solutions drive performance and reduce costs while helping our clients to improve the management and sharing of data across their organisations.

In 2024, Aker Systems won the Breakthrough Culture Awards highlighting growth companies putting culture first. In 2020 Aker Systems was recognised as a ‘One to Watch’ on the Sunday Times Tech Track.  The Company was also recognised at the Thames Valley Tech Awards 2020; winning the Thames Valley Tech Company of the year, the Emerging Tech Company and High Growth Tech Business categories.  We encourage people of all different backgrounds and identities to apply.  We are committed to maintaining an inclusive, and supportive place for you to do your very best work.

A UK Government Security Check (SC) clearance is required for this role. If you don’t hold SC clearance, we will support you to apply assuming you have lived and worked in the UK for a minimum of 5 years. 

As the Lead Pre-Sales Architect within Aker Systems, your primary responsibility will be to develop customer solutions that consistently outperform those produced by our competitors by innovatively and cost-effectively meeting the requirements of our customers.  You will be responsible for leading the Pre-Sales technical activities in our pursuit of new business and growth.

You must be prepared to travel to London 2-3 times a month, occasionally including an overnight stay.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Winning Proposals. You will be responsible for creating compelling technical responses to customer requirements, enabling Aker System to pursue new business via the DOS4, DOS5, GCloud, Technology Services and other commercial frameworks – either directly; or indirectly via a suitable partner or prime contractor.  You will be experienced in creating high-scoring responses to customer’s technical requirements.  You are to proactively seek customer feedback, acting upon that feedback so that we may continually improve the strength and quality of our technical responses.
• Client Engagement. You will act as an ambassador for the business supporting sales personnel in client engagements.  You will have excellent client-facing skills with the ability to influence and define enterprise solutions, data architecture transformations and their associated benefits – both financial and non-financial.  Critically, you will do more than advocate technology for technology’s sake, but instead readily articulate the business benefits and return on investment inherent in Aker System’s customer-facing solutions and relate these to the customer’s specific circumstances.
• Solution Leadership. You will be responsible for the design, planning and pricing of market-beating solutions that consistently outperform those of our competitors.  As the senior technical professional assigned to strategic bids, you will provide leadership of the solution development activities and our responses to technical requirements throughout the sales process, ensuring the overall technical response and customer solution is of winning caliber and achievable in delivery.  You shall take accountability and responsibility for your solution.  You must clearly articulate design decisions both informally in whilst developing the solution in the ‘Campaign’ phase of the sales process[1], and formally within the Company governance process.  You must be able to balance economic, commercial and technological factors to create market-beating solutions.
• Competitive Insight. Through a combination of industry experience, proactive networking (internal and external), and technology horizon scanning you will maintain a balanced view of market capability.  You are to apply this insight in the creation of customer-facing solutions by identifying the competitive nature of the individual solution estimates that inform the customers’ total cost of ownership for Aker-supplied solutions.  Estimates that fail to pass either: the commonsense test; or which are at odds with prevailing industry practices – are to be challenged and corrected to ensure that Aker Systems is able to win new business and grow by remaining competitive.
• Thought Leadership. Through proactive participation in strategic industry groups – and other 'idea generating or thought leadership' forums (such as public sector Chief Data Officer or CIO forums) – you are to enhance Aker’s profile in the market by providing thought leadership and technical white papers